By Matters India Reporter
New Delhi: Pope Francis has dismissed from priesthood the former spokesperson of the Catholic Church in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.
“Now, with regret and pain I wish to formally communicate to everyone that by an official decree from our Supreme Pontiff Pope Francis, dated 22 October 2020, Anand Muttungal (Joseph M.T) of the Archdiocese of Bhopal, has been dismissed in poenam (penalty) from the clerical state and dispensed from all his clerical obligations, including that of celibacy,” says a November 26 message from Archbishop Leo Cornelio of Bhopal.
When contacted, Muttungal told Matters India November 27 that he was not aware of the Vatican action against him.
“I don’t know what offence I have done. Until date, the Vatican authorities have never sent me any query or information regarding any matter,” he explained through a Whatsapp message.
Muttungal claimed that since 2009 he has been “trying to improve the working of the Church, and I will continue my work. I believe it is my call from Jesus.”
“The Catholic Church teaches that once a person is ordained a priest, he is always a priest,” he asserted.
Muttungal had served as the archdiocesan public relations officer for seven years both under Jesuit Archbishop Pascal Topno and Archbishop Cornelio. The 48-year-old activist priest had also acted as the spokesperson of the Catholic Church in Madhya Pradesh.
However in 2013, Muttungal had allegedly rebelled when he was removed from the post of public relation officer.
He filed a complaint that the prelate along with his vicar general Father V C Mathew and archdiocese spokesman Father P J Johny had conspired to make him mentally unstable through slow poisoning. On February 7, 2013, a magistrate ordered the registering of a case against the three accused.
The prelate also said that he had consulted psychiatrists about the matter and they advised medicines. However, the plan was abandoned later as the priest began behaving normal, he added.
The prelate also alleged that Father Muttungal had tried to challenge his authority and discredit the Church with malicious intent.
Muttungal on the other hand said he had gone to the court after he failed to receive response from a police complaint he had filed soon after he became aware of the alleged conspiracy against him.
The archbishop’s latest letter says he and others in the archdiocese had tried for the past ten years to bring Muttungal back and reintegrate him into “our priestly communion, which turned to be an exercise in futility.”
The archbishop points out that the decision to dismiss Muttungal is “final “and there is no appeal against the pope’s decision.
The prelate “earnestly” prays that Muttungal “may gracefully accept the decision of our Supreme Pontiff and make a positive turn in order to begin a new chapter in life.”
Early this year, Muttungal was released from a jail in Bhopal after 50 days. He was arrested on December 11, 2019, from his residence by the officials of Economic Offence Wing (EOW), a special branch of the state police dealing with economic offences.
He was later produced before a special court that remanded him to 15-day judicial custody. The priest later tried to obtain bail from the same court without success.
Subsequently, he moved the principal bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court at Jabalpur which granted him bail on January 28.
Muttungal was, however, released from the jail two days later after he furnished furnishing a bond of 50,000 rupees.
Charges against Muttungal reportedly included cheating, forgery, criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust, and forging documents,
The case was registered October 17, 2019, after almost two-years preliminary investigation.
“The priest is the first among eight people named as accused in the case,” a police official then told Matters India.